237 Shot in Boston in One Year Since 2013 Boston Marathon – Final Report

Over the last year we have kept track of each and every shooting that has been reported in the city of Boston since the Boston Marathon. As of April 15, 2014 there were at least 237 shootings in the city in the one year since the 2013 Boston Marathon (4/15/13) and out of that at least 35 people were shot and killed. We say “at least” because there could be more shootings or deaths caused by shootings that were not reported or were not able to be verified or confirmed.

One Year of Violence in Boston – 237 Shot since 2013 Boston Marathon

Below is a video summary of one year of shooting violence in Boston showing each shooting we know of as they happened and the count of how many were fatal/non-fatal, able to be shown on the map etc..

Why Count Shootings?

In the wake of the bombing of the Boston Marathon last year, there was an incredible and immeidate response to the horrendous violence. Condolences, thoughts and prayers for Boston were received from around the globe. The One Fund was established and raised millions of dollars to aid the victims. The investigation and subsequent manhunt for the bombers rallied nearly 9,000 Law Enforcement Officers from every agency imaginable. Phrases like “One Boston” and “Boston Strong” echoed on news broadcasts, appeared on memorials, in headlines, even on the fronts of buses.

In the same week there were 14 shootings across the city and for some, “One Boston” rung hollow in communities long plagued by violence. Jamarhl Crawford, publisher and Editor recently discussed this further on Radio Boston:

We began keeping track of the Shootings to ask the question – Is there really One Boston? Boston Strong? Is the violence that occurs on a day to day basis acceptable? Is the reaction and response to violence different depending on where it happens or whom it happens to? Have we become desensitiezed to “regular violence”?

Definitions

In our list, shootings were when one person shot and hit another person. Each number represents one person although multiple people may have been shot in one incident and individuals may have been shot more than once. We did not include Officer Involved Shootings where a Law Enforcement Officer did the shooting or was shot. We did not include domestic incidents between family members, siblings or spouses within the household (however some of these types of incidents were deemed shootings or homicides by BPD). We did not include reports of “Gunfire” where shots were heard but no victims were reported. We did not include stabbings, assaults (unarmed or with any kind of weapon) or any other type of violence. We did not include other cities (Cambridge, Brookline Chelsea etc.).

Shootings by Month

The chart below shows how many shootings happened in each month with an expected increase around the warmer months.

April – 24
May -19
June – 31
July – 26
August – 22
September -20
October -18
November -13
December -18
January -17
February – 9
March – 7
April 2014 – 13

Shootings by Neighborhood

The chart below shows how many shootings happened in each neighborhhod. The disparity here is striking. Dorchester (with 72 shootings) and Roxbury (with 63 shootings) together represent more than 55% of all of the shootings in the city. Mattapan and the South End each had double digit counts for the year with all other neighborhoods facing 5 or less shootings in the entire year. There were also at 43 shootings we did not have location information for.

Thank you for this important information. All the families that have lost their daughters and sons due to violence should be getting money, just like the Boston Strong victims have been supported nationally.

I am wondering if the site can put the race of the people that have been shot. I know they will be mostly people of color but white america needs to know.

Valerie owen

I was speaking with a surgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital and was told three teenagers were admitted to The hospital with gun shot wounds. On Wed. No police reports were filed. They were shot on a playground in Dorchester. Looks like the public is not being informed about everything that is going on in the city. Who benefits from not reporting crimes?

theresa

Wondering why you did not include shootings within households? What would be your reasoning behind that decision.
As a Dorchester native I am very much aware of the huge amount of shootings in the neighborhood. They are almost always black men/boys shooting other black men/boys. Any idea how these kids are getting these guns? Why they are killing each other? Are the perpetrators going to jail? Lots of questions